My Arch-Enemy is a Brain in a Jar

My Brother is a Superhero #4

by David Solomons

Luke and his brother have swapped bodies by accident. Zack's got Luke's weird feet while Luke has Zack's SUPERPOWERS! Now he needs another world-threatening adventure to try them out. Could a family mini-break at Great Minds Leisure Park be his chance? Probably, because that's where his super-clever arch-enemy lurks, fermenting dastardly plans and bubbling gently...

'My Arch-Enemy Is a Brain In a Jar' is the fourth instalment of Luke's laugh-out-loud adventures.

From the author of 'My Brother Is a Superhero', winner of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and the British Book Industry Awards Children's Book of the Year, and 'My Gym Teacher Is an Alien Overlord', winner of a Lollies Laugh Out Loud 2017 Book Award.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens

288 pages, Paperback

First published June 28, 2018

About the author

David Solomons has been writing screenplays for many years. His first feature film was an adaptation of ‘Five Children and It’ (starring Kenneth Branagh and Eddie Izzard, with gala screenings at the Toronto and Tribeca Film Festivals). His latest film is a romantic comedy set in the world of publishing, ‘Not Another Happy Ending’ (Karen Gillan, Iain de Caestecker), which closed the Edinburgh International Film Festival. My Brother is a Superhero is his first novel for children. He was born in Glasgow and now lives in Dorset with his wife (and novelist) Natasha, and son, Luke.

Reviews

[Joseph · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Well, if you think by swapping lives with my brother I am going to experience a deeper and more sympathetic understanding of him, then forget it. I refuse."

That's a funny line, but the problem is...it's true. Solomons doesn't use that angle, but he doesn't really find another one to replace it with, either. Luke and Zack aren't living each other's lives, since they're on vacation, and it turns out that Luke can't even use Zack's powers, so we don't even get to see him finally be a superhero. Instead he wanders around with Serge and Lara, discovering weird things and wishing that he was Star Guy/Lad. Why bother with a body swap story when he's doing the same thing that he does in every book? Things get a little more interesting in the second half, when Luke and Zack are both in Luke's body, and then Zack's gets hijacked by the villain, but even then it's not explored as much as I would have liked.

It's frustrating, because there are lots of different angles that we could have gotten. I think Solomons wanted to keep Luke from using the powers to emphasize that he doesn't need to be a superhero, but that could have been achieved if we saw him not liking it as much as he expected, or being bad at it. (We could have also had more a parallel to Stellar.) Alternatively, we could have seen him being really good at superheroing, and Zack enjoying his break from the responsibility, with the conflict that would entail about them still wanting their actual bodies back.

The villains are a pair of feuding sisters, and at a few points they try to create a parallel between them and Luke and Zack...but Luke and Zack aren't fighting any more than usual in this book, so that doesn't really work, either. Also, from the "Arch-Enemy" in the title, I assumed that the villain would be Christopher Talbot, so that was disappointing. At least he's the hook for the finale.

The ending is kind of cool, with them flying a water park that is actually a spaceship, though it also goes on longer than it needs to.

On the positive side, we continue the trend of bringing back a character from a previous book and making them more interesting. This time it's Miss Dunham, of all people. I wish Solomons had spent more time with the angle of her and Luke bonding over their weird supernatural fixations that nobody else believes.

All in all, it's not a terrible book, but it's definitely weaker than the previous ones.

[BooksForTopics · Rating 5 out of 5]

his is the fourth instalment in David’s Solomons' popular and entertaining series for children. Earlier books in the series have already proved to be hugely popular in primary classrooms, with the first book My Brother is a Super-Hero
winning Waterstones Children's Book Prize and the British Book Industry Awards Children's Book of the Year and the second book My Gym Teacher Is an Alien Overlord scooping a 2017 Lollies Laugh out Loud Book Award.

David’s books are humorous, fast-paced and packed with action and the newest addition is no exception. 11-year-old Luke is still reeling after Zorbon the Decider has robbed him of his claim to superpowers and given the powers to Luke’s totally undeserving older brother Zack instead.

To complicate things further, Zack and Luke have now swapped bodies on their return from a parallel universe, so while Luke is happy to have control of the superpowers, he is definitely not happy about having his older brother’s teenage body, not to mention Zack’s weird feet. Now all he needs is a chance to put the superpowers to the test.

An unexpected complimentary family holiday at Great Minds Leisure Park soon provides the perfect opportunity. Anyone who has ever taken a trip to a holiday park will appreciate the dry humour with which the Leisure Park is portrayed. But behind the pine-scented air fresheners, the food cupboards doubling as bedrooms, the strangely-coloured water in the outdoor pool and the choices of 'dining experiences’, loitres something altogether more sinister.

Luke soon discovers that his dastardly arch-enemy is lurking there too. What follows is a witty adventure moving at a hundred miles-an-hour, filled with Solomons' own brand of comedy featuring superhero jokes, witty dialogue and entertaining one-liners.

Fans of the series will not be disappointed with the fourth instalment of Luke's adventures.

Many thanks to the publisher for kindly sending me a review copy of this book.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so incredibly funny! In this instalment of My Brother is a Superhero, Zack and Luke have swapped bodies (uh-oh) and are sent on an all expenses paid holiday to Great Minds Leisure Park. Here, as the title suggests, they meet an evil brain in a jar called Lor-ayn. Some of the other names include Sarah Pellum (cerebellum!) and Mee-grayn 😂I cannot wait you read book 5!

[Qamar · Rating 4 out of 5]

"My Arch-Enemy is a Brain in a Jar" taught you about using your brain to solve problems creatively. Remember, when you face a challenge, think carefully and use your imagination to find a solution.

Let's use our smarts to overcome obstacles, just like in the story.

Keep thinking creatively, Qamar!

[Aisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way it makes you want to read more of the book!